


The Shepherd

by sublimeWaves



Series: EXO Challenges [13]
Category: EXO (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - Fairy Tale, Dark Fairy Tale Elements, M/M, Other, Sickfic
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-18
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-15 20:33:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 4
Words: 13,980
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11238663
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/sublimeWaves/pseuds/sublimeWaves
Summary: “And maybe, hear me out, you shouldn’t fall in love with the scary magical demon spirit that is all powerful and dangerous and lives in the heart of a swamp and goes around at night to kidnap people to turn them into sacrifices.  Just a thought.”





	1. Winter (Prologue)

**Author's Note:**

> Emotion: Magical (?)  
> Word: Carnivore  
> Theme: Unknown
> 
> Warning: this story is very dark and might contain some disturbing imagery.

There is a small village in the heart of a forest where there was peace between the villagers and the wood.  The small patch of green clearing was their home.  The forest was respected and loved by the villagers and they knew that it was alive and that it respected and loved them, too.  But, one day, merchants were starting to come through the woods as a shortcut to villages to sell their goods.  Bearing items of wealth and food, the villagers wanted to buy them, but had no items to sell.  The merchants said that they could bring in some woodcutters and they could sell the trees.

After this, hordes of woodcutters settled in the village and they were angry as they stomped and burned and killed many of the trees.  The wood was not happy.  It struck back, sinking the men into the mud or rotting the wood that they harvested.  The small village was scared, so they compromised. _With this wood, we make such great things now!  We have beds and shelves and shelter and books!_

**_You take my flesh and return nothing._ **

_We can give you some.  We promise._

The wood liked this idea.

**_But if you fail, then we start to get you._ **

But there was one more condition that the wood gave.

**_Appoint one person from among you to bring me the gifts.  They are now ours._ **

The villagers gathered together to see who should be the one to be tied to the wood and offer the gifts.  The leader of the village told them that he would make the sacrifice and do so.  It was a dangerous journey into the bog with many obstacles.  The village protested:

_You are our leader!_

_Who will lead us if the wood takes you?_

_What of your family?  Of your daughter?_

With the leader’s daughter crying into her hands at the prospect of her father being chosen, a young boy came forward.  It was the Shepherd boy who ran one of the villages only stable sources of food.  With few sheep, due to the limited grassy areas, the boy spent his time taking care of them and making sure that none died.  He would lead his small flock through the woods in order for them to find other sources of food and for exercise.  If they died, then there may not be enough food to go around.

Recently orphaned, the boy had found himself spending most of him time alone or with his sheep.  But the sight of the leader’s daughter made his heart feel warm.  This warm feeling had him coming forward to be willing to venture into the unknown.  The town accepted him.  The wood did, too.

The Shepherd boy found the task difficult, carrying so much through the mud with no assistance from a cart that could get stuck.  The receiving point for the gifts was in a clearing where a waterfall of mud was housed that led to a pond that overflowed into the area.  Knee deep, the Shepherd boy kept moving to the pond to offer the finest of goods.  The goods were swallowed by the earth and the Shepherd boy returned home.

With the compromise in place, the village flourished.  Soon, many villages wanted to visit with them and barter for goods.  Still, the village kept the offerings hidden, just sending the Shepherd boy every season with another package.

The peace did not last.  One village sent a foolish man who was a known thief to trade for wood.  Seeing the Shepherd boy walk off towards the forest with fine crafts made the thief greedy.  Following the boy, he stole the offerings after the Shepard boy had left them to be swallowed whole.

The wood grew angry.

It flooded the village with mud and water.  The grass was destroyed and anything that was not a tree and did not grow above water died.  The village pleaded with the wood.  Screaming and yelling, they tried to convince the wood that it was not their fault.

_We do not wish to die!_

_It was not one of us!_

_Please, take pity!_

**_We do not care._ **

The water moved with the will of the earth.  It swept up the leader’s daughter and took her away to be taken by the clearing.  The Shepherd boy, who knew the area from his numerous trips, found himself running to the waterfall.  The village was far away and none of the villagers were able to keep up.  Falling to his knees in tears he cries:

_Please do not take her!_

The clearing whipped up a storm in response, but did not harm the Shepherd.  The Shepherd could not see anything due to the winds and felt himself sinking into the ground.

**_She must be taken.  That is the consequence._ **

_I love her!  I do not wish to live without her!_

**_We cannot give you her._ **

The storm stopped, but the Shepherd still wept.

**_You are mine.  You will not die.  You will serve us._ **

_If I do not?_

**_Then we will make you._ **

The Shepherd boy felt his blood boil and shake as his muscles screamed and forced him into a standing position.  Bolted to the ground, the Shepherd could not flee in terror.

**_Young Shepherd boy, we offer you a condition to save your village._ **

_Is this a trick?_

**_No, pity._ **

Terrified, the boy stands as the water rushes to greet him.

**_Your orders are to collect the sacrifice from your village and bring them to us.  You will do this long past the time that all you known will have grown old and withered away._ **

_The compromise?_

The Shepherd gulped.

**_If you have found what you most seek, then this will stop._ **

The Shepherd boy did as he was told for years and years and years.  Always collected sacrifices and hiding who he was in shame.  Time has passed and it is said that the Shepherd still haunts those woods, looking for what he most seeks and the village is still in fear of being taken.

**The End.**

“Again!”  The young boy says as he grabs the book from his mother’s hands.  He sits in bed and has never grown tired for bed when the Shepherd boy’s story was read to him.  His mother hushed him.

“No, Kyungsoo, it is far too late,” the woman said as she stood up with the book and tucked her son into bed.  A quick kiss goodnight and she goes to leave, taking the candlelight away and bathing the boy in darkness.  She sighs, closing her eyes softly.  “Sometimes I think you like the story of the Shepherd a bit too much.”

“He’s so brave,” the boy says.

The woman chuckles from the doorway.  “He is.”

There is a confidence within him that shines even at such a young age.  As with all children, he is also severely earnest.  The boy smiles as the light barely illuminates his face.  

“I love him.”


	2. Spring

As Kyungsoo’s carriage rides up to the gigantic ornate buildings making up the campus, he finds himself in a state of conflicting emotions.  This magnificent campus is next to a small hidden village which he had to ride through to get here.  The village is in the middle of a woody swamp, but had more swamp than forest.  In most places, the ground was sticky and wet.  It was deceiving as the depth of the water was unknown at times, shallow in some and deep in others.  The village brings him a sense of nostalgia as his time as a child who hid away reading books with villages just like this.  He used to romanticize this type of place, but now it also brings him dread.

The campus held white buildings in the middle of the swamp.  Tall, while, stone walls surround the entire area.  Ornate, gothic structures that were so tall they made Kyungsoo have to tilt his head back to admire them.  The action made the pain increase enough for him to put his head down.  He needs help out of the carriage, which his driver provides.  Such a small action ignites a burning in his chest, the same burning that brought him to the Sanatorium in the first place.

A woman greets him at the door, dressed in a nurse’s outfit that matched the pure white of the building.  She talks in an uppity manner as she greets him and scurries him through the halls to give him the tour of the building.  The Sanatorium was founded after a travelling alchemist found a healing ailment in the surrounding swamp’s mud.  It worked wonders and word spread quickly about the magical healing swamp.  Doctors and scholars quickly flocked to the village most near it and the marble Sanatorium was built to keep the ones who needed it the most close to the source.

Although, it was meant to help all those who were sick, greedy people have risen the price of admission to the Sanatorium for the past few years.  Only the wealthiest could stay for long periods of time.  Luckily, Kyungsoo came from old money and that was not an issue for his family.  The only thing Kyungsoo asks is about the village.  The woman sneered as she talked about how the villagers keep to themselves away from the grand complex.  No one left the complex unless to study the swamp or buy from the traders that sometimes visited the woodcutting village.

Kyungsoo is sure she said more as she loved the sound of her own voice, but his head turns fuzzy from the long journey and tour and time starts to slip away from him.  This talk tired him and after what seemed like hours, finally had him being shown his room.  A pure white affair, as everything else was, that made Kyungsoo’s vision blur sometimes.  His things, so few, and his books, so many, laid at his clean bedside.  He quickly notes that there is another bed next to his, messy and unkept.  But, he does not bother with thinking about it too hard.  Instead, he opts for a nap and tells himself that he will organize everything later after his lungs do not feel as if they are on fire.

The first time he meets his roommate, he is standing over the bed that Kyungsoo is asleep in and makes enough of a racket to wake him up.  He introduces himself as Byun Baekhyun who says that they are only a year apart in age.  It surprises Kyungsoo when he realizes that Baekhyun was a year _older_ and not younger.  Truly, it astounds Kyungsoo that Baekhyun is not five with the way that he acts.

The boy has a flat face that he uses to get into Kyungsoo’s space whenever possible.  Sometimes Kyungsoo does not believe that the boy has any other expression than excited.  He was much too energetic for a boy with a heart problem, but he persisted.  Never letting the fact that he was sick get him down, he ran through the halls and terrorized the other residents with small pranks.

Mostly he spent time in the garden as there was not many places he could go since they could not leave the complex and most of the complex was devoted to research.  He had dark hair, but would steal lemons from the kitchens to brighten it up with the help of the sun.  He would joke about it to Kyungsoo as the boy seemed to hover around him constantly with his upbeat attitude.  Even Kyungsoo’s pessimism never deterred him.

All of the residents only had a few different styles of white clothes to choose from.  Baekhyun and Kyungsoo had one to choose from: white slacks that bunched at the ankle and a cotton shirt that could be tucked in, yet no one ever did.  Kyungsoo had received a stack of them his second day in the Sanatorium.  “Look at all your new clothes!” Baekhyun had exclaimed sarcastically.  “You can be just as fashionable as the rest of us.”

Kyungsoo knew his life story by the end of the second day.  Never ending jabber comes out of his mouth about his life before as a son of an aristocrat in town.  Kyungsoo’s head always threatens to throb at the sound of his voice.  He never leaves Kyungsoo alone, sticking to his side like glue since the time that they have first met.

Although, in the end, Kyungsoo tolerates him.  Kyungsoo almost never left his house before coming to the Sanatorium since he was such a sickly child even from a young age.  Being placed in a bubble that his family had forced upon him had left an impression on him.  His parent’s actions being out of love or embarrassment, Kyungsoo could not say.

Baekhyun’s family had obviously sent him to the Sanatorium from the later.  The second he started showing signs, when he was eight, he had been sent here to live out his days.  Despite growing up in a such a gloomy place, he was always there with a smile and a listening ear to make sure that Kyungsoo had something to do and someone to talked to.  For that, Kyungsoo was thankful.

He was the institute’s longest resident and was about to celebrate this tenth anniversary since his arrival.  Most patients did not last the year.  Within the first week of Kyungsoo’s stay it becomes clear to Kyungsoo that people die in the Sanatorium every day and are usually here for only a short period of time.  The stress was almost always too much for the staff as well and none of them stuck around too long.  It was all that they could afford.  Many people see this place as a last-ditch effort for their loved ones.  There was a plethora of children and elderly here, as they were the most vulnerable, but few long-standing residents and fewer teenagers.

There was only one other that was even remotely close Baekhyun and Kyungsoo’s age.  Unsurprisingly, Baekhyun had befriended him as well when he arrived four months ago.  Kyungsoo met him early into his first week.  He was a young boy named Sehun.  Faded grey hair and blotchy skin, except for his face.  Unlike Kyungsoo and Baekhyun, he looked ill.   Handsome, pale, unblemished face and younger than Kyungsoo and mischievous just like Baekhyun with just a bit of stoicism to make his smiles feel earned.  Baekhyun introduces Sehun as one of his current friends.  Quickly, Sehun and Baekhyun had incorporated Kyungsoo into their small group.

The two boys would beg for ideas from Kyungsoo about what they should do for fun.  The boring Sanatorium, and the unspoken lack of health, made it hard to keep themselves entertained.  With no stimulation, they pestered Kyungsoo.  At the end of the first three days, Kyungsoo pulled his most prized possession from his belongings.  The story his mother had told him as a child, one she had gotten printed just for him.  He then read the boys the story of the Shepherd.

Kyungsoo always felt himself get absorbed into the story, one of the only comforts he has found in life.  He found himself being taken away from the Sanatorium into the pages and illustrations.  His heart always pounded at the mention of the Shepherd at the end.

At the end, he looked up to the two boys whose eyes were wide.  Sehun speaks first, oddly as Baekhyun blinks at him rapidly.  “You tell stories well.”

Kyungsoo had never read allowed to anyone other than a tutor or his toys before and was taken aback by the compliment.  “I do?”

Sehun nods as Baekhyun seems to jolt to life beside him. He leans forwards and whispers, “You speak of the Grim.”

Kyungsoo’s mouth turns dry as he focuses on Baekhyun.  “The Grim?”

Baekhyun keeps his voice low.  “The village that you speak of is this one.  There is a rumor that they only allowed the Sanatorium because it provides sacrifices.  The Grim comes at night and takes those who are the most near death.”

Sehun rolls his eyes.  “Says who?”

“Chanyeol, in town, a _villager_!”  Baekhyun says adamantly.  The youngest boy laughs a bit at Baekhyun’s absurd beliefs.  Voice low, and edging on serious, Baekhyun continues.  “You two haven’t been here as long as I have.  The Grim comes and takes people.”

Kyungsoo frowns.   The story of the Shepherd only exists in his book.  How could there be a magical wood?  He shakes his head as he clears his thoughts and pushes back the hope of the Shepherd’s existence.  “You are just trying to scare us,” Kyungsoo accuses.

The eldest vigorously shakes his head.  “When I was younger, I would see people one day and not the next.  Bodies are required to go to the morgue but they were not there when I checked!  Where do you think they go?”

Sehun tilted his head.  “The ground?”

Kyungsoo thought about the spreading of infections.  “A fire?”

“The swamp.”

Kyungsoo asks all his nurses about the Grim and if they knew anything about the story.  None of them told him that they knew and dismissed the question immediately.  They were not the friendliest of people.  He also asks those in the garden one day with Baekhyun as Sehun rests on the ground.  None of the elders indulge their fantasies and the children were fascinated.

“Why do you care about the Grim?”  Baekhyun asks him as they head back to their room.

Kyungsoo feels his ears warm.  “The Shepherd is my favorite story.”

The small group sneaks out four days later to go to the tiny woodcutting village.  It is easy in such a grand complex and they are left alone so much that no one notices them missing.  Baekhyun had done this countless times and Sehun seems to be as familiar with it to.  His lungs burn, but Kyungsoo tries to keep up.  They go slowly as Sehun looks like he about to pass out halfway there while a spritely Baekhyun waits for them.

The village is dark and damp and only had a few houses, a cooking house, a small child care place, and a general store.  It was deserted for the middle of the day.  Baekhyun tells him that all the people were working to cut trees.  Chanyeol, Baekhyun’s best friend, lived above the general store and was still a bit young so he did not have to go cut down trees.

When they enter the store, they find Chanyeol but also a boy who was Sehun’s age and the only other one their age in the village, Jongin.  Jongin ran a small boat service through the swamp.  He took the woodcutters to new places in the swamp to find trees and researchers to travel the area in hopes of finding new cures.

Chanyeol is the first to greet them, jumping over his desk in the back of the shop full of wears.  He is a ball of energy and has a never-ending source of joy within him and Kyungsoo did not think anyone could be happier than Baekhyun for such a long time.  He enjoyed talking and playing music on spring nights on his guitar.  He smiled and joked and was extremely likable when he was not talking as if everyone was across a field and he needed to be heard.

On the other hand, Jongin was quiet and generally kept to himself.  He loved to draw and talk about city life.  He could talk to Baekhyun and Sehun for hours about it and never get bored of all of the technology, even some that could be found in the Sanatorium.  There was nothing else he loved more than art.  He carried a book of sketches and always kept a writing utensil on hand.  He draws Kyungsoo one day with frightening accuracy and blushes deeply when complimented on it.

 Also, he was the one who loved stories out of the whole group.  As Kyungsoo would tell his stories, not beginning with the Shepherd by Baekhyun’s request, the group could feel themselves getting sucked into the new worlds.  Jongin in particular would stare with curious eyes as he hung off every word.

Even when the others would joke or sing, sometimes Jongin would ask him to tell other stories.  Kyungsoo was well read after spending his whole life trapped inside of his house so he never ran out of stories.  Some were long and some were short and all were fascinating to the younger boy.  The others liked when he told stories, too.

“It makes you come alive,” Baekhyun tells him one night as they are about to fall asleep.  Baekhyun would always beg for the stories when they would put the two in the mud baths in attempts to alleviate their symptoms.  Not that Kyungsoo could see any symptoms in Baekhyun.  Kyungsoo, on the other hand, could feel a small weight lift off his lungs at times.  Baekhyun tells him that it is all a placebo and it was the calmness that heals them.

It is in the middle of Kyungsoo’s second month that Baekhyun tells him to tell the whole group the Shepherd story.  He had already told Sehun once when they were in the garden, Sehun falling sleepily by his side as if his eyes could not stay open.  His hair was starting to the turn the color of smoke from his dark color and made him look like an elderly man.

They gather in the shop to hear the story and do not stop him.  At the end, Kyungsoo looks up to them and realizes that they are staring at him.  He realizes there is a large smile on his face which he immediately corrects.  He has not felt happy since he has come to the Sanatorium and he imagines this is the best he has felt since his first day.  Jongin’s face is blank while Chanyeol’s is in a straight line all while Baekhyun has a smug gin on his face.

“Where did you hear that?”  Chanyeol quickly drops his expression and laughs.  “Who tells their kid a story like that?”

Baekhyun rolls his eyes in aggravation.  “It is about the Grim!”

Chanyeol sighs and shakes his head.  “There is no Grim.”

At this, Sehun chuckles while Baekhyun hits him in the shoulder.  “I told you so!”

The two best friends bicker as the youngest eggs them on.  It is comical seeing the small body of Baekhyun try and take on the large brown haired boy in a fight that he would surely lose.  Next to him, Jongin keeps his voice low so that they others cannot hear.  He has what Jongin would call a melancholy expression.  “You looked so happy.”

“I love this story,” Kyungsoo answers immediately.  It is not a lie but something in him tells him that it is not the whole truth.   He hopes the other cannot hear his heart as it threatens to slowly jump out of his chest.  From the story or his illness, Kyungsoo could not say.  Thankfully, Jongin does not ask him any more questions although it looks like he wants to.

The next medicine day, when Kyungsoo can barely move due to weight on his chest and Baekhyun lays in the bed next to him trying to focus on his breathing.  These are always the worst days, not able to move and in pain.  Baekhyun sometimes talk in order to make the time go faster in one of the only ways he knows how.  “Do you love the Shepherd?”

Eyes wide and heart accelerating, this was not what he needed when his chest screams in protest.  “Why would you say such a thing?”

Kyungsoo cannot see Baekhyun, but his voice is low.  It is painful for him to talk, and yet he continues to do so.  “I know it is just a story, but you speak of him like a lover, all gentle like.”

Although he has not wanted to admit it to himself, Baekhyun has asked him and brought all of the feelings that he has tried to suppress.  What person fell in love with a character?  A young boy who had no prospects of a relationship and was on the fast track to death.  Someone who was looking for a source of comfort.  Someone who was searching for the thing they wished for the most.  “I do.”

The spring nights continue as the days turn hotter.  Chanyeol plays music more as the weather turns better and the dampness of the swamp is mildly less swampy.  During summer, he says, it gets unbearably hot and the swamp becomes moist and disgusting.  Better enjoy the outdoors now than later.

One night, as Baekhyun and Kyungsoo get ready for bed they hear the woman who lives in the room across from them scream.  Screaming is not uncommon in the Sanatorium, it is a place where people are in constant pain, but this woman had not said a word in days and was breathing her last soon.  She was known to have tremors and was tied to her bed at night in order for her to not hurt herself as she slept.

The scream was cut off and silence filled the halls.  The doors are locked to the patient’s rooms at night as a precaution for those who are senile, a common side-affect from many medical remedies used here, but Baekhyun has learned the ways of lock picking.

Rushing out the door, Kyungsoo on his heels, they run across the hall and peek into the window of the woman’s small room, only to be greeted with an empty bed.

The next day, Jongdae arrives.


	3. Summer

When Jongdae comes, things do not dramatically change but there is a shift that Kyungsoo starts to notice.  If he was honest with himself, which he rarely is, he would say that the shift was even before that but it is a shift that makes Kyungsoo uncomfortable. 

Jongdae comes with a kind smile and Kyungsoo thinks that Baekhyun and Chanyeol are going to eat him alive when he comes.  All this worries wash away when Jongdae reveals his other side, a devilish one that is persistent on the one he is tormenting, but still much less mean spirited than Baekhyun, Chanyeol, or even Sehun to an extent.  He banters with Chanyeol and talks quietly with Jongin and fits in seamlessly into the group.  He is so kind and talkative that he even befriends one of the staff members, one of the newer ones.  Baekhyun stands in awe and calls him magical.

There is no indication that he is sick.  None.  As Kyungsoo breathes heavily he wonders how Jongdae has come to this horrendous place.  That is until he is talking to them in the garden and all of the sudden he abruptly stops, goes stock still, and falls over.  He looks dead and the small group goes into a panic as they try and get a staff member, but before they can, he pops back up with a smile and keeps talking as if nothing has happened.  He only stops when he sees the relief on his friend’s faces and apologizes before launching into another story.

His kindness becomes more prominent as Sehun’s skin starts to turn to ash, matching his hair that is now the color of lifeless snow.  It takes him so much more time to go into the village to go see Chanyeol and Jongin.  Even when he gets there, he cannot seem to be able to keep up with Chanyeol, Jongdae, and Baekhyun’s quips.  Instead, he stays with Kyungsoo and Jongin and takes time to listen to Kyungsoo read to Jongin.  He sleeps more than he did before and finds himself not able to open his eyes all of the time.  Every so often, Chanyeol will play him music, soft and soothing.

While he and Jongdae accommodate Sehun’s sickness, Chanyeol, Baekhyun, and Jongin do not seem to and mostly ignore it and act like nothing is wrong.  It is one day when watching Chanyeol sing that  Baekhyun had called Sehun his current friend.  Just like how he was one of Baekhyun’s current friends.  Just like how Jongdae was one of Baekhyun’s current friends.  Kyungsoo wonders how many other current friends Baekhyun has brought here over the years.  How many have Chanyeol and Jongin have met. 

Jongin asks him if he is okay, soft voice comforting.  He lies and says that he is fine although he feels as if this revelation is triggering an existential crisis.  He says nothing as Jongin curls up next to him.

Kyungsoo likes to observe Jongdae, Baekhyun, and Chanyeol sometimes when they are together.  They fall together so seamlessly, as if they were best friends their entire lives.  They all have boundary issues and invade each other’s space every few seconds. 

Their favorite game to play is with words and banter that is so very quick and fun.  Kyungsoo can play with them sometimes, a quick thinker himself, but they also joke around with a familiar air of intimacy that Kyungsoo cannot seem to get ahold of.  His deadpan nature does not always fit with the morbid satire that the other three possess.  So, he observes them instead.

Jongdae and Baekhyun become close quickly and form a bit of an exclusive group with Chanyeol at times.  All their personalities complement each other.  All the group loves music to some extent and Jongdae’s voice is beautiful as it harmonizes with Baekhyun’s and Chanyeol’s guitar.  Kyungsoo sings as well, but he feels his voice deteriorate with his illness every time Baekhyun causes him a migraine.

Baekhyun is much closer to Jongdae than with Sehun and even Kyungsoo, but his friendship with Jongdae feels different than his close friendship with Baekhyun.  As much as Kyungsoo does not wish to admit it, Baekhyun is probably his best friend even though he finds himself caring more for Jongin.

It does not take long for Kyungsoo to tell Jongdae about the story of the Shepherd.  They are alone in the garden as they do not have treatments today and Jongdae is tired of playing chess for the thousandth time.  After the story, he tells Jongdae about the Grim. 

Jongdae has not said anything, only humming at times to show Kyungsoo that he is still listening.  Instead of laughing at him, he smiles.  “You sound so excited.  What have you done with Kyungsoo?”  Kyungsoo shrugs but Jongdae’s perception catches on.  “You say that, but, do you have some theories?”  Kyungsoo feels himself a bit speechless.  Only Jongin allows him to ramble on about the Grim.  So he does, and does not stop for hours.

In the end, Jongdae rolls his head to look at him with a smug smile.   “You are so cute when you talk about him!”

Kyungsoo blushes and quickly changes the subject to hide his embarrassment.  Jongdae laughs.

On one of Sehun’s better days, he goes with Chanyeol, Baekhyun, and Jongdae to trespass upon the kitchens.  Jongin pulls Kyungsoo back as they walk away slowly towards a small wooden dark boat.  Jongin takes him out into the swamp.  There is no sunshine, just water and mud and bugs.  The moisture in the air clings and the air is still.  Even so, Jongin tells him all about the fauna and the lack of animals because they are food for the bugs.  He talks of the scary trees and the bogs that will swallow you up whole.  Jongin has always been one who respects the forest, just like Chanyeol.  They are there to live, not to harm.  Chanyeol sings of it sometimes.

Here, alone, Jongin comes alive.  It is just like his small smiles when he sketches or listens to Kyungsoo’s stories but much longer and brighter.  Quiet and soft spoken, but truly alive as if this was where he belonged no matter how much he talked of life in town.  As they sit in the small boat, side by side, Jongin starts to sketch one of the ugly plants.

“I wish I could make as beautiful of pictures as you,” Kyungsoo compliments.  He truly is in awe of them.  They are so lifelike, frighteningly so.  Just like after every compliment, not that Kyungsoo gives them out freely or frequently, Jongin’s neck turns red and it travels up his face to frame his cheeks.  Kyungsoo thinks he looks nice like that.

“I wish I could tell stories like you,” Jongin answers back.  Kyungsoo smiles, his new-found talent in storytelling always makes him feel a bit giddy. 

All of a sudden, an idea pops into his head.  “Then we should combine our skills.  You should draw my stories, like an illustrator.”

Jongin does not miss a beat.  “Is this because you want me to draw the Shepherd?”

“The Shepherd is not my only story,” Kyungsoo answers immediately, a bit defensive.  He knew that he loved to talk about the story but had he really gotten that bad?  Even so, why did Jongin sound so disappointed in Kyungsoo?  Did he not like the story?  He does not think so, the boy has asked him multiple times to tell him it.  Why would he ask for something he did not like?  Jongin isn’t looking at him, opting to stare into his sketchbook instead.  He has stopped drawing and grips his pencil hard.

His voice is strained.  “Why do you love the Shepherd?”

“Who told you I love the Shepherd?”  Kyungsoo asks immediately.  What has Baekhyun and Jongdae said?  Do they talk about him when he is not around?  Baekhyun would be someone who would do such a thing.

There is a small upturn of the lips despite Jongin’s expression being morose.  “No one had to tell me.  You are so _open_ when you tell stories.  It is like you unravel and everyone can see every emotion you hold.  I was amazed the first time you told us one.  Your face is always blank or annoyed, but this was like seeing a whole new person, as if you were replaced,” Jongin admits softly.  There’s a light blush on his cheeks that contrasts nicely with his skin.

Kyungsoo blinks in response as the gears in his head turns.  He had always felt himself getting lost in his stories, but he did not realize that others could see him getting lost.  He thought that they were just enjoying a journey together.  Embarrassment overcomes him and he cannot bare to look at Jongin.  He cannot even escape on his small boat.  All he can do is look away and hope that the subject changes.  It does not as Jongin asks again, “why do you love the Shepherd?”

“He is brave and willing to do whatever it takes for the one he loves,” Kyungsoo answers.  “He is trapped for eternity in search for what he wants most.  It is just so tragic.”

It is a generic answer and it is not what Kyungsoo identifies with most in the Shepherd, but he does not tell Jongin that.  He might like Jongin, trust him, but he has always been a private person.  Must have been something he developed due to the growing up in a bubble.  Jongin looks like he knows that that is not all.  “But he kidnaps people.”

“The Shepherd does not like to kill people,” Kyungsoo answers immediately.

“The story does not tell you that,” Jongin says.  “Maybe the forest wanted him because deep down he liked to kill people, just not his love.”

“Your just being pessimistic,” Kyungsoo answers.  “The Shepherd is _good_.”

“How do you know?”

“I just do.”

Jongin does not question him any further as they sit in the boat.  To ease the awkwardness, Kyungsoo speaks of one of his happier stories about a generic knight and a princess.  It takes a while, but Jongin is able to draw two pictures, each beautiful for him to take with him.  Kyungsoo does not like tension and he likes it even less on Jongin’s face.

Kyungsoo hates medicine days the most.  It drains him of his energy and he feels his mind lull in the mud bath.  The first few times had felt good, but now it feels as if he is drowning in his own skin.  The weight in his chest feels like solid lead that pulls him down slowly into the disgusting concoction he lays in.  Once he felt as if he was actually drowning only to find out he had disgusting mud in his mouth. 

The bath feels like it takes hours and he hears the words ‘hallucinogenic properties’ more than once being thrown around among them.  It is humiliating because a team of nurses has to bathe him and then take him out of the bath to put him in another of cold water to clean him and put him to bed.  He feels like a rag doll and his head lulls side to side and the lights are too bright and so is the never-ending white surrounding him.

He also hates these days because he cannot move his head sometimes and sometimes the nurses put his head in the direction of Baekhyun’s bed and he cannot look away.  Baekhyun is curled up, hands fisted in the sheets as he scrambles to breathe.  Every intake of air sounds as if he is running a marathon and Kyungsoo is sympathetic because his own lungs feel as if they are trying to lift weights all on their own.  Baekhyun is being exposed to a type of aromatherapy along with the mud baths but Kyungsoo thinks that the doctors just want him to die.

Sehun comes to their room later into the night when the two are a bit better.  His joints jerk as he struggles to walk to Kyungsoo’s bed and sit next to him.  His lips are chapped, face the color of old parchment, hair ash, and his breaths come out raspy.  Of all things, he struggles to speak as he asks for the Shepherd story.  Despite being Kyungsoo thinking he was devious, the boy had a kind side to him.  It was a bit sensitive and the Shepherd story was always a bit too dark for him.

Surprised, Kyungsoo is quick to oblige him, even though each second his headache increases and he has to take breaks in the story.  Sehun has expressed to him more than once that the story scares him to some degree.  Kyungsoo just shrugs as he thinks it is comforting.

“It’s sheep,” Sehun rasps out at the end.  Kyungsoo turns to the young boy who has taken to curling into him.  It is ridiculous considering how much taller the boy is, but his weakened state makes him look so much smaller, breakable.

“What?”  Kyungsoo asks him in bewilderment.

“It is looking for its sheep,” Sehun says weakly.  Lips open, Kyungsoo does not know how to respond to that.  He has never thought about the Shepherd missing its sheep.    He knows that the Shepherd found comfort in his sheep as they were the ones that replaced his family when he was orphaned.  All it made Kyungsoo think of was how it was like him and his books.  Both looking for comfort.  He is jolted out of his thoughts as a small tremor ripples through Sehun’s body.

Kyungsoo smiles at him and tries to be comforting for once.  “Maybe he is.”

Sehun falls asleep soon afterwards and the nurses take him away.  He looks so small in their arms.  Kyungsoo had not realized how underweight he looked until then.  At least he is still healthy looking, even on medicine day compared to others, but not Sehun.  Not for months now. 

Right before Kyungsoo and Baekhyun go to sleep and the nurses lock up, Jongdae wonders over to tell them goodnight as he always does.  He was still too new for medicine day to make him feel like he needed the world to end to take away the pain.  When he goes back to his room, there is a loud noise and a loud scream and it sounded like Jongdae.

Baekhyun and Kyungsoo find the will to get up, adrenaline fueling their sickly bodies as they take the short trip.  Jongdae is in his doorway on the ground as another fainting episode has taken place.  Kyungsoo takes a look inside.  The window is wide open and Sehun is not in his bed.  He is gone.  Baekhyun rushes to the window and looks down but there is no body to be seen.  The nurses come and deem it a suicide.

“There is no body!”  Baekhyun yells at them as loud as he can.  His voice is weak and raspy from the treatments.  “This isn’t a suicide!”

The nurses shrug and put all three boys in Baekhyun and Kyungsoo’s room.  Jongdae wakes up in the middle of the night, but does not say anything immediately, just clinging to Baekhyun like a lifeline.  He looks absolutely terrified as he buries his head into Baekhyun’s neck.  They agree to talk in the morning and attempt to sleep, but no one does.

“I saw the Grim.” 

The story gushes out of Jongdae’s mouth as soon as they wake up.  Baekhyun and Kyungsoo have generally recovered from medicine day, but Jongdae still clings to Baekhyun as he tells them.  The Grim is tall and wears a tattered black cloak to obscure its body.   Smokey matter swirls around its of deep purple and black that bathes the entire room in a sense of dread.  It has wings that are broken and bent.  It was holding Sehun’s body like a limp doll and looked at Jongdae with blindingly bright white eyes.  He describes the whole experience as if someone took everything that was good and light and hopeful in the world and sucked it out to leave this disgusting creature.  Throughout it, Baekhyun rubs comforting circles on the back of Jongdae’s hands as Jongdae leans into him.

Kyungsoo listens with a twisted fascination.  Something bursts in his chest. 

The Grim is real. 

The Grim is _real_.

Even if the doctors and nurses tell them otherwise, Kyungsoo feels as if this is the best news he has ever received.  It is quickly punctured by the fact that the young boy who had asked for a story just hours before was taken, but Kyungsoo could not help it as his heart felt a burst of happiness.  It was all he ever dreamed.

The next time they go to the village, Jongdae tells Chanyeol and Jongin what has transpired.  Chanyeol’s eyes are wide as Jongin looks a bit scared.  As Jongdae recounts his encounter, Jongin draws the being to the best of his ability.  The sketch looks menacing and disturbing and it is all that Kyungsoo has ever dreamed of.

The group tries to change subjects soon afterwards and even though Kyungsoo wants nothing more than to continue to talk about the Grim, he does not think that Jongdae can handle it much more.  More than ever Kyungsoo wants some sort of distraction and the Grim is the only one that stops him from thinking more about anything else.

They do not talk about Sehun. 

Chanyeol, Baekhyun, and Jongdae fall into their old routine of banter and jokes while Jongin and Kyungsoo talk about town and everything seems so fake as they pretend to be normal.  Baekhyun, Chanyeol, and Jongin are good at acting like nothing bothers them, but Jongdae has cracks (looking towards a spot that is empty every so often followed by an eerie silence, becoming more tenacious around Baekhyun and Chanyeol).  Whenever Baekhyun and Chanyeol notice the other one starting to drift, they immediately pull him back in with a joke and a hand on his shoulder or knee.

Softly, Jongin talks to Kyungsoo and makes sure that the others cannot hear.  “It is more difficult this time.”

“What is?”  Kyungsoo asks.

“Sehun,” Jongin answers.  “Baekhyun’s friends usually don’t last this long.  Not enough time for them to get close.”

There is silence as Jongin continues.  “It’ll be worse with you.”

Kyungsoo does not say anything for the rest of the visit.

He does not believe Jongin because the three of them act as if nothing bothers them, but he realizes that he is wrong over the next few days.  Baekhyun asks for the Shepherd story every night as they go to bed.  He has found a dark amusement in its story, grim musings that seem to bring almost a sense of depression onto the boy.  Kyungsoo finds this a bit disturbing, but he has realized that for how annoying Baekhyun is, he has a dark serene side.  The serene parts should have made Kyungsoo tolerate this side more, but as soon as it appears, Kyungsoo secretly wishes for the bright, happy Baekhyun to come back as soon as possible.

The next day is yet another medicine day and Kyungsoo is left with his thoughts.  His obsessive love of the Grim was all he could think about as he smiled at the thought of meeting him.  Thoughts of going into the swamp and finding the clearing so he can see the Grim eats away at his mind.  He imagines Jongin taking him on his boat so that they can search.  After all this time, he thinks Jongin should be with him to see the Grim again.

A week after Sehun’s disappearance, Kyungsoo is lying in bed and cannot seem to keep it in any longer.  Baekhyun is also Kyungsoo’s bed, as he does sometimes for comfort through the pain.  Most of the time, Jongdae will sleep in Baekhyun’s bed but tonight he does not seem to be able to find his way there.  Maybe medicine day is finally taking its toll.  Kyungsoo does not wish to keep anything from Baekhyun.  “I want to see the Grim.”

Woozy from medicine day, Baekhyun looks up at him.  There is honesty and curiosity in his eyes as well as a streak of adamancy.  “I do as well.”

“Why?”  Kyungsoo asks.  Baekhyun has always liked the story of the Grim, but he was sure these last events have put him off on the idea.

“I know you love it, but I _hate_ it,” Baekhyun says through his teeth.  His body trembles a bit where it is curled into Kyungsoo.  He sounds like he is close to tears.  “How many people has it taken that I knew, that I was friends with?”

“It is not his fault,” Kyungsoo says as Baekhyun’s slowly closes his eyes in frustration.

 “I know,” he admits.  His fists grip the sheets so hard that his knuckles turn white.  “But I need to be angry at it.”

Kyungsoo frowns.  “Then your anger is misguided.”

Baekhyun looks up, a jolt of energy coming back to him as he chuckles a bit.  “And maybe, hear me out, you _shouldn’t_ fall in love with the scary magical demon spirit that is all powerful and dangerous and lives in the heart of a swamp and goes around at night to kidnap people to turn them into sacrifices.  Just a thought.”

“Be.”

“What?”

“You said ‘fall’ but I already _am_ so it so you should have said ‘be’,” Kyungsoo corrects Baekhyun as the latter rolls his eyes.

“Whatever,” he responds as he settles next to his roommate and falls asleep, the turmoil of the day being too much on his body.

Baekhyun asks Jongdae if he would like to go the swamp the next day as they are in the garden.  The boy looks hesitant at first and Baekhyun assures him that he does not have to go, for once being a bit sensitive to the situation, but surprisingly, Jongdae nods.  “I cannot get it out of my head.  Maybe if I go and confront it, it will not be as bad.”

Chanyeol and Jongin are not as receptive.  Jongin flat out refuses to take them out in his boat with no further explanation.  He does not need to as Chanyeol’s voice raises as he tries to reason with Baekhyun and Jongdae, giving up early with Kyungsoo and his obsession.

“There is no place that you describe that exists,” Chanyeol says immediately.  “It is just a fairytale.”

“I _saw_ it!”  Jongdae exclaims.

Baekhyun frowns at the defensiveness Chanyeol is showing.  “Then show us around the swamp. Convince me there is nothing there.”

Chanyeol sighs with frustration, raking a hand through his hair.  “The swamp is sacred; we do not go there.”

“So there is a place!”  Kyungsoo exclaims as Chanyeol turns to him.

“There is not.”

“You are such a horrible liar,” Baekhyun says, standing his ground.  “We are going to go to go into the swamp and see.  There is nothing you can do about it.”

Jongin stands up.  “Do not go hunting the Grim.”

“I thought you did not believe in the Grim,” Jongdae asks before turning to Chanyeol.  “You too.”

Chanyeol balls his fist.  “Jongin is right.  You should not mess with the wood.”

Baekhyun crosses his arms.  “Well too bad, we’re going.”

“I can understand why Kyungsoo wants to go, but why you?”  Chanyeol says as he points to Kyungsoo.  His voice rises, Jongdae steps back, a hand on Baekhyun’s and one curled into Kyungsoo’s shirt.

Baekhyun is a ball of furry, no longer the laid-back boy that he usually is.  With a stern set in his mouth and sharp features, Kyungsoo swore he was looking at someone different.  Jongdae clings to him, almost scratching his delicate sickly skin.  “Because it takes us!”

Chanyeol goes still for a second before crossing the room and taking Baekhyun’s hands.  “I know you are angry, but you cannot go to the clearing.”

“And do what?”  Baekhyun asks bitterly.  “Wait around for it take Jongdae and Kyungsoo and I?”

“I-“

“Because that is what is going to happen,” Baekhyun spits out.  “We are going to be kidnapped and you will never see us again.  And _you,_ and Jongin will live in this village untouched because we are the sacrifices.”

Kyungsoo can feel Jongin shaking from where he has grabbed onto Kyungsoo.  Chanyeol goes to pull Baekhyun towards him and goes to grab Jongdae, but Baekhyun pulls Jongdae back and pushes Chanyeol away in disgust.  He sounds hurt as he pleads with Baekhyun.  “You don’t understand.  Please, don’t go.”

“Then explain it to us,” Jongdae says, nails drawing blood to where he is holding Baekhyun.  “Tell us what is there!”

At this, Chanyeol shakes his head and hangs his head as Baekhyun and Jongdae leave.  Kyungsoo goes to follow them but is pulled back by Jongin who has stayed quiet this whole time.  “I know you will go to the Grim no matter what and there is nothing I can do.”

Jongin grits his teeth.  “You love a dream, a fantasy and you have no idea what the Grim is and what it does or how it thinks.  Please, do not do this.  I beg of you.”

Kyungsoo’s lips are dry and he feels a part of him wanting to stay, to not go to the Grim, but the much larger part of him wants to follow his heart.  He thinks about the Shepherd’s tragedy, his loneliness.  He is so close to the Shepherd and he cannot give that up, no matter how much Jongin wants him to stay, even though Jongin himself is a compelling argument.

Kyungsoo steps away.  “I’m sorry.”   He walks away to catch up with Jongdae and Baekhyun as they head to the Sanatorium.

They agree to sneak out of the Sanatorium that night in search for the clearing.  Kyungsoo is feeling a bit off after the argument from earlier and the despondent look in Jongin’s eyes, but he tries not to think of that.  There is something about Jongin that Kyungsoo finds comforting to be with.  His unassuming nature and small kind smiles were something that Kyungsoo would not want to choose to leave. 

But, something else in him, the louder part of him, remembered all those nights he spent alone curled around his book for comfort.  The Shepherd had everything he loved taken away: his love, his freedom, his sheep.  Kyungsoo always had thought that the Shepherd was searching for something to love that would not be taken away.  Something that would not leave him.  Someone who was drawn so much to him that they could not be asked to leave. 

Stubborn, Baekhyun was adamant about going tonight as he was too psyched up from Chanyeol earlier.  He grinds his teeth and curses Chanyeol as they get ready.  “I cannot believe he is doing this to us.  These past ten years have all been a fucking lie.”

They walk towards the swamp, hand in hand, with Baekhyun in-between.  It is comforting instead of annoying for the first time in Kyungsoo’s life.  His skin vibrates in excitement.  It is windy and both Kyungsoo and Jongdae hold their lanterns to their chests in hopes that they do not blow out.  It warms his chest and it annoys him from where both his heart and lungs work on overdrive.  They wear tall uncomfortable boots that the researchers wear.  Jongin’s boat is not there, but Kyungsoo did not expect it to be.  He tends to lock it up at night due to the wind.

Before they descend in the bog, Baekhyun turns to Kyungsoo.  “What do you think the Grim is searching for?”

“It’s sheep,” Kyungsoo mimics Sehun’s answer.  This causes Jongdae to laugh, hearty and long.

“Really?”  The eldest asks.

Jongdae has calmed down but a smile still adorns his face.  Kyungsoo is sure he is here only because Baekhyun is and he does not want to leave the other alone.  “Isn’t it obvious: souls.”

Baekhyun lightly hits Jongdae in the chest.  “I am trying to be serious.”

“The one he loves,” Kyungsoo answers honestly.

Baekhyun tilts his head to the side.  “Do you think that is you?”

Kyungsoo does not answer but he believes that he can be.  He wishes to, but Baekhyun does not need to know that right now.

The mud is thick and it takes a lot of effort to walk in as it tries to sink them lower into the bog.  It is disgusting, but none of them talk and try to take comfort in the silence.  Every noise seems elevated of the bugs and the wind.  More than once they are deceived and fall into the mud since they cannot judge the depth, but Baekhyun drags them along as they search.  Not too far into the heart of the swamp, Kyungsoo hears running water.  They head towards the sound and find a dry clearing with a small waterfall in the back.  It falls into a boiling bog that has a couple of large trees surrounding it.

“This must be it,” Kyungsoo says as he takes a step towards it.  He is mystified by the find and feels as if there is nothing more than he needs than to go towards it.  He is held back by Baekhyun and Jongdae who seem to be much more hesitant.  A few seconds of searching with the lantern in the pitch-black swamp reveals the terror in their eyes.    “I can go alone.”

“No,” Baekhyun says as he regains momentum.  “We have come this far.”

Tentatively, they walk towards the waterfall of mud that splashes down.  They walk forward towards the bog and the group peers down into it.  Baekhyun’s grip tightens on Kyungsoo’s hand to an almost painful degree.  Kyungsoo feels his lungs burn, normal considering the exercise he has just done and his illness, but he finds himself choking on the air.  The others feel it too and look around and see that there is a fog that has descended on the clearing quickly.  Kyungsoo can barely see Jongdae when Baekhyun says, “I think we should leave.”  He trembles.

Jongdae screams as he falls over which brings Baekhyun to his knees in shock.  Kyungsoo looks down to find a hand coming out of the bog and has grabbed a hold of Jongdae.  The hand is coated in a tattered gloved with milk white threads coving bone and tugs down hard on Jongdae.  It is strong as Jongdae’s foot disappears, but Kyungsoo and Baekhyun rush to grab on to him, Kyungsoo refusing to break his hold on Baekhyun as well.

Jongdae faints and Baekhyun crumples to the ground as he tries to pull him back with all his might.  The hand is too strong as Jongdae is pulled down so only above his chest exposed to the air.  Movement catches Kyungsoo eyes.

Grotesque boney white wings span out from a humanlike body.  They are twisted as they keep its body in the air.  Black tattered hood obscures the rest of the Grim’s malformed body.  Piercing white orbs pear down to him.  It looks to be all bone and smoke.  It hovers above Jongdae’s body.  The air turns cold and dry and lifeless and it chokes Kyungsoo.  Baekhyun screams at the sight.  Kyungsoo looks up into its eyes.

_He is beautiful._

Kyungsoo is enraptured by the sight.  His heart beats loud and slow and the next thing he knows he is taking a step towards the bog.  As he does, he slowly feels himself sinking but barely registers the feeling.  All he can feel is the Grim’s eyes on him and feel the wings surrounding him.  The Grim lowers as Kyungsoo can feel the wings encircle hi.  A wing gently falls down the length of his back and he shivers.  Slowly, he extends his hand, so close so close, to the Grim’s face.  His fingers brush against the hood before he is being pulled back out of his trance.

He falls through the wings and lands upon Baekhyun.  He still has a hand fisted into Jongdae’s clothing and refuses to let go.  The fog picks up and starts to swirl around them.  Whatever calmness that Kyungsoo had just experienced erupts into a storm and he realizes that he needs to get Baekhyun out _now_.  Holding Baekhyun’s hand, he goes to turn around and pull, but Baekhyun is still holding onto the sinking boy.  They have angered the Grim and the wood.

“We need to go!”  Kyungsoo yells at him.

“I can’t leave him!”  The strain in his voice leads to a crack at the end.  Baekhyun is crying, ugly tears that mar his face.  Jongdae’s face goes under.  “I don’t want to lose anyone else.”

Kyungsoo shakes his head.   “He’s gone!”

With the last of his might, he pulls with enough strength for Baekhyun to lose his grip as Jongdae falls into the bog.  Rushing to his feet, Kyungsoo runs with a vice grip on the older boy’s hand, terrified and does not stop until he cannot go anymore.  They are far away from the clearing and almost at the village when he drops to his knees in exhaustion.  Baekhyun sits next to him in ankle deep water as he cries into his hands.  They sit in silence as they try and digest what just happened.

“I can’t lose anyone anymore, Kyungsoo,” Baekhyun cries as he leans into the other boy.  “I just can’t.”

Kyungsoo does not respond, hands held tight, as they make it back to the Sanatorium.  The thought of going to the general store crossed their minds, but they could not deal with Chanyeol or Jongin in this state.  Now, knowing there were safer, they are slow.  Adrenaline gone, Baekhyun’s heart is starting to act up while Kyungsoo’s lungs burn as they make the trek.


	4. Fall

The staff whisper about Jongdae, unlike they had with Sehun, but it is quickly dropped by midday.  Baekhyun has shoved his and Kyungsoo’s beds together and cries into it.  He goes on and on until there are no tears left. 

It is medicine day that day so they have an excuse to not go into the village.  Instead of blabbering like he usually does, Baekhyun stares at the wall in silence as tremors wreck through his body and Kyungsoo loses track of time as it slips past him.  The only thing he says is that he does not ever want to heard the story of the Shepherd again.

With nothing but his thoughts, Kyungsoo sits in the cold, mind wondering back to the Grim.  Those few seconds that he spent in the Grim’s presence felt like an eternity.  Even just thinking about it ignites his nerves.  There was a certain calmness and he only wishes that he could have said something.  There is not a doubt in his mind that the Grim would have taken him and he would have gladly gone.

The two go and visit Chanyeol and Jongin a few days later, after Baekhyun has recovered.  It is cold and the wind has picked up.  Parts of the fauna have iced tips and soon the snow will fall.  The two are slow, as the cold seems to spike their illnesses, as they walk into the general store.  As soon as Chanyeol and Jongin look at them and their fallen faces, they know something has transpired.

Concern is evident on both of their faces as Kyungsoo sits and recounts the story to every detail, only leaving out the part where he had spent those few heavenly moments with the Grim.  Pale, Baekhyun wraps around his arm.  The two listeners are resilient as they listen to the story.  As he finishes, he finds his hands being taken into Jongin’s hands.  For some reason, Kyungsoo cannot seem to make himself to consider his eyes, suddenly afraid of what he might find.

Instead he looks at Chanyeol.  Grip tight and face strained, he looks as if he is torn between two options: angrily yelling at them for their mistakes and rushing to wrap himself around Baekhyun in a sign of comfort.  He settles for a bit of both as he puts a hand on Baekhyun’s knee and says, “I told you that bad things happen to people to go there.  Everyone knows that.”

Baekhyun’s head snaps up to meet Chanyeol’s.  The furry from before resurfacing.  “All the _villagers_!”  His nails dig into Kyungsoo’s arm.  His voice comes out low, seething.  “Did you know what was out there?”

Chanyeol lets out a sigh of exasperation.  He looks disappointed, in who or what Kyungsoo does not know.  “Baek…”

“Did you know!”  Baekhyun demands, not backing down.

Chanyeol’s frown deepens.  “Do not put the blame on me.”

“You know,” Baekhyun breathes out.  He looks conflicted.  “You know.”  A bit of hysterical giggling.  “Of _course_ you know!  I have asked you over and over and even when it mattered you do not care.  You do not even give a shit about us.”  His voice is almost yelling at the end.  He sounds hurt, he sounds betrayed.

“Of course I care!”  Chanyeol yells.  “About _you_ and _Jongdae_ , but does it look like I can do anything about it!  No, I am just a villager.  I can do _nothing_.”

“Jongdae could have lived longer.  He had time,” Baekhyun reasons.  “The Grim takes the sickest!”

“The Grim takes those who are looking to interfere first,” Jongin explains, talking for the first time for the day.  His voice is small and tries to be soft as he breaks the news.  “The wood will do anything to get rid of those who know too much about the Grim.  Jongdae would have been taken by the end of winter.  Just like you and Kyungsoo will be next now that you have gone to the clearing.”

A shot of pain courses through Kyungsoo.  Was this his fault?  Did he put Sehun, Baekhyun, and Jongdae in danger by telling him the story of the Shepherd.  Was he the reason that they were being targeted?  Guilt rushes through him.  “How do you know?””

Jongin’s eyes shift around the empty store.  “The elders know more of these woods than the rest of us.”

Chanyeol nods along as he sighs.  “He did not have time.  I’m sorry, Baek.”

“Did you know this before we went,” Baekhyun asks, all of the anger leaving him at Jongin’s small revelation.  He trembles as he realizes that his time is coming to an end.

“It could be assumed, but I have been wrong about the Grim before,” Chanyeol admits.  “It is not that I don’t care about you, all of you, it is just that if the elders knew I had said something, knew that Jongin had just told you two outsiders this information, I don’t know what they will do.”  Chanyeol looks terrified of the prospect of the elders finding out.

Baekhyun and Kyungsoo stand up as the conversation ends and they look to go back to the Sanatorium.  Baekhyun looks like he is about to pass out and Kyungsoo cannot take the outside air clogging his lungs much longer.  Jongin squeezes Kyungsoo hand before he leaves and Chanyeol envelops Baekhyun into a hug as Baekhyun almost fall into the touch burying his head into Chanyeol’s shoulder.  A small broken noise comes out of him.  “I’m tired, Chanyeol.  I can’t do this anymore.”

Chanyeol nods but Kyungsoo can see his eyes turn red as he gives Baekhyun one last squeeze.  “What do you mean?”

“You know what I mean,” Baekhyun says, refusing to look at his face as they turn to go back to the Sanatorium.

The next few days has Baekhyun turning more worn and pale.  He looks tired as he takes more time to sleep, weary from the weather as the previous events take their toll.  Knowing his expiration date seems to finally have taken all the fight out of him.  Kyungsoo watches as the confident boy withers away as the medicine days frequency increases.  Pain filled days that make Kyungsoo want to scream in pain sometimes but cannot find his voice.

He finds himself getting angry at Baekhyun.  Kyungsoo did not realize how much he relied on Baekhyun and his attitude to cheer him up.  It was something for him to lean on and lead him through the pain when it enveloped him the most and now he was giving up.  He was giving up when Kyungsoo wanted him to fight for life.  Guilt shot through him, but he did not know what to do.

He questioned if he was who the Grim wanted.  If the Grim wanted him, then why did he not take him?  Kyungsoo did not know how the Grim knew of him or how he knew of his love, but he must have sensed it.  That minute had meant much more than mere curiosity to the Grim and Kyungsoo knew it.  He scrutinizes every second of the encounter and doubt starts to creep into his mind. What if it was rejection and Kyungsoo was reading everything wrong?

He visits Chanyeol and Jongin less.  Without Baekhyun, it is hard to be in Chanyeol’s gloomy presence.  He still sings, but the music is somber.  He opts to listen to Kyungsoo read the other stories he has, more uplifting fairy tales that always have a happy ending.  Chanyeol has never learned to read, only to do some math to run the store that no one ever seems to visit.

Mainly, Kyungsoo goes to visit Jongin who Kyungsoo never sees in Chanyeol’s presence anymore.  He wonders if the two fought but does not pry.  He has enough drama in his life and his illness is making him feel less and less able to confront anything.  So, he goes into Jongin’s boat and watch as the silence envelops them.  Jongin likes to sleep on Kyungsoo’s thighs but Kyungsoo does not always want to be alone with his thoughts these days.  He reminds himself that he does not have may days left.

“You saw the Grim.”  Jongin says one particularly cold day.  He’s drawing one of the many trees and Kyungsoo wonders how he can keep drawing the same things over and over again.  He needs new inspiration.  Kyungsoo nods.  “How was it?”

Kyungsoo is done sugarcoating things for anyone, even if it is Jongin.  “The minute of my life,” Kyungsoo says honestly.

Jongin blinks up at him, curiously.  “Do you find it that beautiful?”

“Gorgeous,” Kyungsoo admits.

“How am I supposed to compete?”  Jongin snuggles his head in the crook of Kyungsoo’s neck comfortably.  Kyungsoo does not say anything as he feels a warmth develop his chest but his feelings are too tremulous for him to properly respond.  He doesn’t want to tell Jongin that he is already doing enough. 

It is the last he sees of Jongin for quite a while.  For some reason, Kyungsoo cannot bring himself to go and see him or Chanyeol as the days past slowly.  His illness seems to finally be catching up to him and Baekhyun.  They lie and wait and medication day seems to be everyday as he sinks into mud and tries to not imagine Jongdae’s body sticking out of it.

Chanyeol visits the Sanatorium one medication day.  By visit, Kyungsoo means that he sneaks in and pretends to be a new patient who walks around until he finds Baekhyun and Kyungsoo.  Strength does not allow Kyungsoo to move his head to look at them fully, but he can hear Chanyeol talk to Baekhyun, not getting a response back.  Baekhyun lays in the bed, pain making him tremble as he clenches the sheets and Chanyeol’s hand.  Chanyeol remarks that he feels like his hand is broken quite a few times.  He smiles when he leaves.

At the end of the trip he says to Kyungsoo, “Don’t come down to see us anymore.  Jongin doesn’t seem to dock anymore and I… I just can’t.”

He does not come back.

The next day, when they have recovered slightly, now that it takes longer and longer to feel better.  Surprisingly, Baekhyun talks as if he is his old self for a bit.  “I thought I would live forever,” he muses.  “I lived so long and I seemed to be getting better.  I always thought that one day that they would let me go.  How naïve am I?”

“Not naïve,” Kyungsoo says.  He wants to say hopeful, but he does not.  “Just a liar.”

“Are you going to try and find Jongin?”  Baekhyun asks, a spark of hope in his eyes as he looks up to him. 

Kyungsoo shakes his head.  He has always been so sure of everything that he feels, but doubt has clouded over everything that he knows.  “Chanyeol told me that he has disappeared.”

The elder lets out a snort.  “Rejection is hard.”

Kyungsoo turns to him quickly in protest.  “I have never rejected him.  He never asked me anything so how can I have rejected him?”

This makes Baekhyun full out laugh, loudly.  Kyungsoo had missed it.  “I feel so sorry for him.  You cannot even see that you have crushed his heart.  I could never be with someone who had put a spirit before myself.”

Kyungsoo frowns as he gets a bit defensive.  “Just because I love the Shepherd does not mean anything about how I feel for Jongin.”

Baekhyun continues to giggle.  “You should tell him that before your true love comes and kidnaps you to sacrifice you to the wood.”

“You do not know that is what will happen,” Kyungsoo says immediately.

“And here I thought you had lost all hope,” Baekhyun says surprised.  “Do you know what the Grim is searching for?”

“Me?”  Kyungsoo mimics their earlier conversation as he rolls his eyes.

“To be cured,” Baekhyun says immediately.  “For the torture to stop.  To not have been picked.”

Kyungsoo falls silent.

Jongin appears in the middle of the night outside of Baekhyun’s and Jongin’s locked door.  Kyungsoo is able to pick the lock after seeing Baekhyun do it so many times and stands at the door as he takes Jongin in.  There are bags under his eyes and his hair looks upkept.  He has not been doing well.  Kyungsoo looks to a sleeping Baekhyun and pulls Jongin into a corridor so that they can talk and no one will find them.  Not that these halls were closely guarded with everyone supposed to be in their locked rooms unable to get out even when death comes.

“What are you doing here?”  Kyungsoo demands to know.  This visit comes to him with surprise after Chanyeol’s request.

Jongin looks exhausted.  “To see you.”

“Chanyeol told me you did not want to see me,” Kyungsoo says.  Jongin nods as he leans into Kyungsoo.

“The villagers are worried and he was trying to protect you.  The elders are severely paranoid,” Jongin explains.  He meets Kyungsoo’s eyes.  “I never don’t want to see you.”

“Is it about the Grim?”  Kyungsoo asks.

Jongin nods as his voice strains.  “Everything is always about the Grim.  Haven’t you figured that out yet?”

“You’re scared,” Kyungsoo says as he realizes that Jongin is shaking a bit.

“As should you be as well.  Baekhyun, too.  The Grim will come for him first.”

Kyungsoo frowns.  The need to protect his friend overwhelms him.  Baekhyun has suffered enough.  “I won’t let the Grim have him.”

Jongin sighs as he squeezes Kyungsoo’s hands.  “You can’t stop him.”

“I have to.”

The younger tries to stay calm, to stay reasonable.  “Have you seen him?  He barely wants to live!  Do not do anything crazy!”

“Can I offer myself to the Grim instead?”  Kyungsoo asks.  Eyes wide, Jongin grabs Kyungsoo’s shoulders in shock.

“Do not do this,” he pleads as he puts his arms around the other and pulls him in close.  “You do not know if you are what the Grim wishes for!”

Jongin takes Kyungsoo’s face in his hands and presses his lips onto Kyungsoo’s and pulls him in tighter, desperate.  Before Kyungsoo can respond he is pulling away and his panicked eyes search Kyungsoo’s, but Kyungsoo has made up his mind very long time ago.  He wishes that he could stay here in Jongin’s arms forever, but Jongin will be alright.  He will live and Chanyeol will be with him.  They will be okay.

He steps back and cannot bear to look at Jongin.  If he can spare himself the disappointment in Jongin’s eyes, then he will do so.  “I’m sorry.”

Walking away has Kyungsoo feel as if his chest is on fire for all of the wrong reasons.  Dread and the feeling of enveloping himself in Jongin’s arms compels him.  The thought of running away with him.   Of taking, Baekhyun and Chanyeol and Jongin with him away from his place.  But deep down, he knows that he can never do anything like that.

Baekhyun is curled up on the bed, sickly pale and all out of energy.  He is so close to death’s door.  Kyungsoo pushes his hair back and kisses his forehead and hopes him all the best as he pulls his lantern from the where it is hidden among his books.  Then, he closes the door to his room for what he knows is the last time.

He makes his way to the village and it’s dark.  It is still early enough that people may be walking around, yet Kyungsoo does not see anyone.  Strangely, there is a large light near the edge of the village, towards the swamp, a place that Kyungsoo had never been before.  It was a bit out there, passed where Jongin’s boat would enter the wood.  With nothing to lose, he makes his way over there, quietly as he tries not to be seen.

From the shadows, he is able to see a bit of what is going on as his jaw drops and his eyes grow wide at the sight.  The whole village is gathered around what looks like a tall wooden on top of funeral pyre.  The fire is slowly making its way up.  The light of the fire reveals that they have painted stripes on their faces with what looks like blood.  But that is not what is shocking.

At the top of the post, Jongdae is tied up, eyes open and panicked. 

His mouth is stuffed with ropes but he looks like he is screaming as the fire goes to reach his feet.  Horrified, Kyungsoo is about to scream when he feels a hand over his mouth and a body pulling him away from the scene.  He squirms as he tries to get away, but he cannot as this person’s strength overpowers him.

Even so, Kyungsoo eyes still stay trained on Jongdae as the fire consumes him.  He feels tears prick at the side of his eyes.  The person releases him and Kyungsoo is about to shout but stops when he realizes that it is Chanyeol.  His face is red from the heat of the flames and the blood that adorns his face drips a bit down.  He has a hand on Kyungsoo’s elbow to make sure he does not run. “You can’t save him.”

“Do you sacrifice everyone?”  Kyungsoo demands an answer.  Did Sehun have to go through this to?  He finds himself so upset at this.  “Do you?”

“Yes,” Chanyeol admits but his voice is pleading.  “But it is not because we want to.  Kyungsoo you don’t understand that we don’t want to do this.”

“You burned him alive,” Kyungsoo yells at him.  “How do you justify that?”

“What would you have us do?”  Chanyeol argues.  His eyes are bloodshot and he looks like he is on the edge of a breakdown.  “We are cursed!  We are cursed for something that one of our own did not do and it torments us.  It tortures us!”  Tears overflow his eyes. 

“If I had the power, I would have saved Jongdae.  Hell, if I wasn’t cursed I would have taken Baekhyun away from here years ago!  Even if I leave, it follows me and I will never be free.”  At this he outright sobs.  “The Grim finds villagers who leave.  It finds villagers who tell others that the Grim exist.  Beakhyun says it does not kill us but it looks for any excuse to!”

Turmoil runs through Kyungsoo as all of the fight leaves him.  This is not Chanyeol’s fault.  It is the wood’s fault.  Everything is the wood’s fault.  It is evil and greedy and manipulative and tortures everyone around it.  Kyungsoo’s voice is soft as he puts his hand on Chanyeol’s hunched over shoulder.  “If I am successful, take Baekhyun and run.  Leave this place and never come back.”

Chanyeol shakes his head.  “Do you know what the Grim is searching for?  Sacrifices.  You won’t be successful Kyungsoo because if the Grim has been under the wood’s spell this long than his mind is too warped than to do anything but follow orders.”

Kyungsoo tries to not let Chanyeol’s hurtful words affect him.  “You are wrong.”

“And I hope you are right,” Chanyeol says as he stalks of towards the path that leads to the Sanatorium.

The path to the clearing is long and Kyungsoo’s run in with Chanyeol has drained some of his energy.  He almost feels as if he is drained emotionally between Jongin’s kiss and Jongdae’s eyes and Chanyeol’s anger.   His body feels heavy but he keeps on moving forward.  It is not like he has to conserve energy for the walk back.

The clearing is not as it was before.  The thick fog is present even as Kyungsoo pulls himself out of the mud and onto the solid ground.  He mentally prepares himself as he stands on the edge of the clearing next to a tree.  Refusing his last chance to step away, he takes the plunge and walks forwards.

He does not reach the boiling bog before he finds the Grim waiting for him in the middle of the clearing.  There is a space around him, just as it was before, of still air that chokes the place and makes Kyungsoo desperate for water.  This does not deter Kyungsoo as he walks forward.

He only stops when he finds himself captured by those beautiful eyes, the ones he wants to get lost.  They make him feel comfort and he focuses on that as he feels the wings envelop him, almost as if he was being held.  The pounding in his heart threatens to push his heart out of his chest.

The Grim is cold and Kyungsoo shivers as he is pulled toward towards him.  This time, Kyungsoo does not wait and touches the side of the hood with both of his hands.  Ice cold and bony he extends his arms and pulls the Grim in as tight as he can.

“I love you,” Kyungsoo whispers desperately.

The hood is securely in place, but this does not stop Kyungsoo from trying to tear it off, from trying to bring it as close as he can to him.  The cold threatens to freeze him to death but his heart makes him feel war.  He feels delirious as he pours his heart out.  “I feel as if I know you, as if I understand everything about you.”

The Grim’s eyes blind him and he closes them shut as he feels something shift against his body. The bone turns soft and the gentle wings disappear.  Kyungsoo keeps trying to open his eyes and only can when the transformation seems to be complete and everything still again.  With it over, Kyungsoo dares to step back.

“Jongin?”

Jongin is looking down at him, the dark swirling smoke still wrapped around them, as Kyungsoo tries to process through his shock.  Why did the Grim turn into Jongin?  What was happening.  He sputters out, “how?”

Instead of answering immediately, the taller boy wraps his hands around Kyungsoo, but leans back as he pushes their foreheads together with a small smile.  “You know the story,” Jongin says smoothly, as he keeps Kyungsoo close.  He whispers against Kyungsoo’s throat.  Wet spots form on Kyungsoo’s shoulders.  “The Grim never stopped being a villager.  Forced to grow and shrink repeatedly as he watches generations after generation of villagers grow attach and die.”

“I do not understand,” Kyungsoo finally lets out.  “Why are you smiling?”

“Because you broke the curse,” Jongin says, face lit up with joy.  Tears are falling freely down his cheeks.  Kyungsoo’s heart fills with joy at the news.  “I am _free_.”

His lungs react as he is pulled impossibly close and snuggled into.  Kyungsoo takes some time as Jongin seems to be happy just to hold him for a while in silence.  Adrenaline has start to wear off and his body cannot take much more of this, although something tells him that it won’t have to much longer.  A smile stretches across his face as he realizes how happy he is.  “What were you searching for?”

“You mean what was the Grim searching for,” Jongin corrects quickly.  “Someone who understood it.  I met people throughout the years who sympathized with the Grim, but not someone who truly wanted to understand it fully.”

Warmth spreads through Kyungsoo as he leans his head into Jongin’s chest.  “What does this mean?  What happens now?”

Jongin looks into his eyes, warm, comforting. “We will not last outside of this clearing.  As soon as we leave, I am sure the wood will take us, but we will be the last.  There will be no more sacrifices.  There will be no more orders to kill those I care about.”  Kyungsoo can feel Jongin’s tears against him as they flow freely.  “I am _free._ ”

As he lets Jongin cry, he takes a look around him.  The air has picked back up and turmoil threatens them and Kyungsoo is sure that they do not have much more time left.  But he finds that he does not care. Not when he is in Jongin’s arms.  So, he does the one thing that he has always dreamed of doing.

He kisses the Shepherd.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> This story went from being a response to someone asking for Jongin who is a Grim who goes around killing people to a fairy tale to a Beauty and Beast type story to some type of twisted fairy tale to whatever the hell this is. I do not know what went wrong.  
> I haven’t been so unconfident about posting a story in a very long time. I wrote this months ago and have repeatedly gone over it and tried to improve it. Yet, it still does not feel ready to post but I am tired of looking at it and I have spent too much time on it to not post it. I hoped you enjoyed it anyways.


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